Albanese nixes Badgerys Creek hopes

The federal government has ruled out building a second Sydney airport at Badgerys Creek in the city’s west even though a major study identified the site, yet again, as the most cost-effective solution to lift pressure on Sydney Airport.

A joint federal and NSW government study, published on Friday, found that the country’s largest international airport would be unable to cater for extra flights by 2027.

A second airport will be required by 2030, according to the study, whose authors include senior bureaucrats and Business Council of Australia chief executive Jennifer Westacott. Failure to increase capacity would cost $6 billion in lost output by 2035.

Badgerys Creek, which was first earmarked by the Hawke government in 1986, “clearly remains the best location to provide significant additional capacity”, the report said.

The Howard government abandoned the plan in 2003 under political pressure.

Federal Infrastructure and Transport Minister Anthony Albanese said the government had committed not to build an airport on the site at the last two elections and that remained its position.

It would investigate Wilton on Sydney’s outer south-west, cited in the study as “the next best site”, he said. A scoping study would be the first step.

NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell declined to comment. NSW Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian said the state government “has been very clear that we do not support another airport in the Sydney basin”.

Sydney Airport said plans to integrate international, domestic and regional services “could provide capacity over a significantly longer period than is forecast in the report”.